Have any treasures in your 'lost & found'?

Jennifer at Covenant Presbyterian displays a t-shirt that arrived in the lost-and-found; after a suitable period if it is not claimed, she'll donate it to SYM. We'd like our other church and ministry partners to do the same. Our pledge is to find homes for the times. If a staff member lives near you, we will be happy to arrange pickup. Otherwise, we ask that you find a volunteer who might bring them to our Drop-in.

CONTACT US WITH LOST AND FOUND ITEMS

So Proud!

I left the fellowship gathering to make copies of brochures to give out at an upcoming volunteer fair. I didn't expect what I came back to see. It was a fantastic evening.

 

First, I had four clients to came to Covenant Presbyterian Church Wednesday night fellowship on their own. They have experienced enough value that they get themselves there for dinner and stay for the discussion afterward. And I had brought two more for the first time in my truck. I came back to find them sitting packed in at tables with church members. They were integrated into three separate discussion tables. That was a really nice sight.

But as I listened, it got better. In the din of all the conversations, I could hear my clients talking and sharing. I heard members listening and sharing. It was truly an exchange. The subject matter was about how a church should go about outreach. Should it be focused on converting people or should it be focused on being a blessing.

 

It truly was just an awesome experience to hear summaries from the tables that included our client's ideas. They are super smart. The best programs we have came from them: Wash Night, for example. And they came up with our behavior rule: "personal daily best behavior" is expected from each client at our indoor events. And we will be launching a bus pass program that they helped design. Clients even voted on our logo back when we started, choosing the cross shape and the street or road striping that forms our logo.

 

What a night. I'm so proud of our clients and of my home church, Covenant Presbyterian Church. God is so good!

"To know, love and serve street dependent youth."
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Project Reaching Out

Austinites and homeless youth volunteer together

It was an unusual sight last Sunday afternoon: homeless teenagers in ragged clothes and members of Austin churches strolling down Guadalupe Street together, holding trash bags, picking up trash with their rubber gloved hands.

What's going on? Community healing. At least that was the aim of organizer Terry Cole, a member of Covenant Presbyterian Church, who last year left a high-tech career to start Street Youth Ministry, which provides resources and spiritual care to Austin's street-dependent youth.

Cole, who is commissioned through Covenant, organized the Reaching Out event to bridge the gap between the street youth population and the rest of the community, because he says there is animosity on both sides.“It's hard to hate somebody when you get to know them,” Cole said.“I think the event was a big success. I thought that an event where the street kids could volunteer alongside others would be win-win. We chose to clean up the area around the Drag because that is where many of the kids hang out, and there is a lot of friction between the business owners and the kids,” he said.

More than a dozen church volunteers and about eight homeless youth showed up for this first event, which was sponsored by members of Pedernales River Fellowship Church, who provided supplies, food and drinks for the volunteers. Together they cleaned up 350 pounds of trash from alleys, hangout places and streets in the west campus area near the University, Guadalupe businesses, and downtown churches.

Cole hopes to repeat this event monthly, with different groups or churches sponsoring. Keep Austin Beautiful also provided tools and supplies.

“Before we started, there was some apprehension on both sides,” said Martha Cole, Terry's wife. “The church volunteers didn't know what to expect, and the street kids were a bit leary, too. Many of them just watched from the sidelines. But for those that got involved, I think it was a great experience. It was interesting to see everyone interacting.”

Cole's aim for Street Youth Ministry is to see transformed lives. Through partnering with Lifeworks, a non-profit organization that provides street outreach, and also a missionary organization called Help for All Nations, Cole ministers to about 60-70 youth per week, many of whom are former foster-care recipients.

For more information about Street Youth Ministries, or to sign up to sponsor a Reaching Out event, go to StreetYouth.Blogspot.com.